Happy Face: Dennis Quaid to play a serial killer in true crime series for Paramount+

Last month, it was announced that Melissa Moore’s autobiography Shattered Silence, which previously inspired the podcast Happy Face, is getting a Paramount+ streaming series adaptation that’s also titled Happy Face. Annaleigh Ashford – whose credits include B Positive, American Crime Story, and Masters of Sex – had already signed on to star in the series at that time, and now The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Dennis Quaid, whose long lists of credits includes the likes of The Day After Tomorrow, Innerspace, Frequency, and Jaws 3D, will be playing a serial killer on the show.

Happy Face will see Ashford taking on the role of Melissa, who at age 15, discovered that her beloved father was the prolific serial killer known as “Happy Face.” As an adult, she has changed her name and guarded her secret while her father has been serving life in prison. Melissa is drawn back into her father’s world after decades of not having contact with him. Happy Face, in prison for his crimes, finds a way to force himself back into his daughter’s life. Melissa must find out if an innocent man is going to be put to death for a crime her father committed, while also discovering the impact her father had on his victims’ families and facing a reckoning with her own identity.

Quaid’s character is the homicidal father known as Happy Face.

This series is coming our way from executive producers Robert and Michelle King, who are also behind shows like The Good Fight and Evil (both of which Ashford has appeared on). We just learned yesterday that Paramount+ has decided to end Evil with the show’s fourth season. Jennifer Cacicio serves as showrunner. Michael Showalter (The Eyes of Tammy Faye) is on board to direct the first episode.

This series has been in development for more than three years and was formally ordered to series way back in November of 2021. The Kings, Moore, and Showalter are executive producing alongside Liz Glotzer, Conal Byrne, Will Pearson, Jordana Mollick, and showrunner Jennifer Cacicio. The production companies involved are CBS Studios, King Size Productions, iHeartPodcasts and Simi-Formal Productions.

The first season of Happy Face will consist of eight episodes and is expected to premiere sometime in 2025. Are you interested in seeing Dennis Quaid play a serial killer on this show? Let us know by leaving a comment below.